Frequencies at which sounds are disturbing, and how brain reacts

Neuroscientists from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and Geneva University Hospitals (HUG) have now sought to analyse what goes on in the brain when people hear these frequencies.

This is the first time that sounds between 40 and 80 Hz have been shown to mobilise these neural networks, although these frequencies have been used for a long time in alarm systems.

Certain sounds, such as a car horn or a human shriek, are jarring to the listener. Alarm sounds, too, are characterised by repetitive sound fluctuations, which are usually situated in frequencies within a certain range. But when a sound is heard within these frequencies, what happens in the brain to hold the listener’s attention to such an extent?